Orange
by Bri-Gils
Summary: Lily absolutely hates the color orange and anything to do with it. Why shouldn't she? The orange walls of her bedroom now mean awkward silences with Petunia, oranges themselves were too citrus-y, and her stepmum's fake hair dye just reminds her that her real mum is somewhere else in the world. So of course she would hate the boy with the orange shoes, right? Right? Marauder's Era.
1. The Freak Visitor

I don not own Harry Potter. Sadly.

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Hogwarts. For wizarding children, it is their dream for the first 11 years of their life. They ache to roam the castles with their friends and siblings; expand their knowledge of magic, pull pranks (not to mention also getting detention- you haven't experienced Hogwarts until you clean cauldrons without magic), and most of all- belong to a house. They spend their young years doing daring stunts like a Gryffindor, making witty jokes like a Ravenclaw, setting ambitious goals like a Slytherin, or just lounging around like a Hufflepuff.

Muggleborns, of course, didn't know about any of this stuff when they were little. They would have odd things happen to them growing up: making hair grow quickly; having a book flutter open to the right page- but they would scoff and forget about it ("Magic isn't real!"). Once they turned eleven, however, they would be introduced into a new world. _Their _world ("Oh, I knew it!" "See, I wasn't going crazy, mum!" "Magic **_IS_** real?!"). As always, there are exceptions.

Take Lily, for instance. At the ripe age of 11 years and 155 days, she has known about magic for two full years. Not unlike her future classmates, the freckled-faced girl spent her nights staring at the stars, dreaming of what they would look like at Hogwarts. Would they be easier to see, without all the pollution from the nearby factories? Both Lily and Severus- the person who led Lily into all of these daydreams and fairytale-like adventures- couldn't help but count down the days until they would board the apparently famous Hogwarts Express. And for the muggleborn—which Lily eventually found out meant born from non-magic people—that day came creeping up on her sooner than expected.

It had started off as any average summer day. 4 July 1971. A Sunday. Two tall girls were the only ones out and about in their neighborhood; the factory smoke made the dense air feel even stickier. The redhead and the blonde were attempting at having a one-on-one basketball match, the latter mostly doing it to humor the former. Of course, the game also gave her a reason to escape her stepmum's complaints about "not going home for independence day!" Despite being separated by bricks and drywall, the middle aged woman's obnoxious "New Yawk" accent was still heard from outside.

"Ha!" Lily cheered as the orange ball flew through the net, accompanied by a "whoosh". "In your face, Tuney!"

Petunia couldn't help but grin as she glanced at her sister, her face shiny with sweat, and almost as red as her hair. "You need a waterbreak, I'll go get the ball."

Lily had a smug look on her face—basketball was really one of the only things the young girl felt accomplished in—and went inside to retrieve a water bottle. By this point, the orange ball had rolled off of their property and into the street. The blonde teenager began chasing it.

Much to her surpise, the ball was stopped by a foot that Petunia was absolutely certain wasn't there before.

"Excuse me, ma'am, can I have the ball back?" The blonde asked politely, only now truly looking at the foot's owner. Despite the heat, they were clad in thick, emerald robes. Her dark, black hair was pulled away from her face and into a thick bun, emphasizing the strict features on her face. Petunia felt as though she wasn't someone to cross, and the she might not be getting the ball back. _She's kind of a freak…_ Petunia couldn't help but think

"Of course." The woman replied in a Scottish accent. She picked it up and handed it the Petunia. "Do you happen to be Lily Evans?"

That made the 14 year old freeze on the spot. _What did this freak want with her little sister?_ "Noo…." Pausing for a moment, Petunia continued. "B-but that Lily is my sister."

_Is that satisfaction on her face? _The odd stranger spoke again, "Is she home at the moment?"

"Y-yeah…"

"Excellent." The woman began walking towards the Evans household. _How does this freak know where we live?! _Petunia moved at a quick pace, reaching the driveway just as the woman rang the doorbell.

"Good morning. You must be Mrs. And Mr. Evans." Petunia finally made it to the door, the same time that her father and stepmother did.

"Has Petunia been bothering you?" David Evans questioned, noticing his eldest daughter behind the stranger.

"No, no. I'm here to inquire about Lily."

Karen, Lily and Petunia's stepmum, turned around and made use of her loud voice, "LILLLEEEEE!"

"Yes?" The eleven year old came running into view, just avoiding a crash between her and her guardians; she didn't avoid spilling half of her water bottle in the process. Her face was still beet red.

"I have come to inform you that Lily has been accepted into Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry"

"WHAT?" "I always knew there something strange about your daughter, Dave!" "Witchcraft!?" all joined in with Petunia's barking laugh. Lily even choked on her water. _What did this woman hit her head on?_

"Just like what Snape said…" Lily whispered quietly, unheard from anyone else.

"I assure you, Mr. and Mrs. Evans, that magic is definitely real."

"Prove it." Karen demanded, crossing her arms and leaning on the front door.

McGonagall looked from Lily to Petunia to Karen to David Evans. Then, after turning to a potted plant on her left and taking out a—piece of wood?—she muttered, "Wingardium Leviosa". The plant rose about a foot in the air.

"Oh my…" The eldest Evans murmured; Karen placed a hand over her heart. Lily, on the other hand, couldn't stop a grin from crossing her face. _Snape wasn't lying! It's really true! It's all true!"_

"Lily," McGonagall turned to the redhead, returning the plant to the ground."Have you ever made anything happen? Anything unsual?"

Memories flashed through Lily's mind, but she felt as though she were going through them for the first time: _flying off of the swing, making flowers contract, Karen's orange hair dye turning blue the night before her wedding…._ Emerald eyes glanced up at the tall lady. "Yes. Loads of times."

She handed the 11 year old an envelope.

HOGWARTS SCHOOL _of_ WITCHCRAFT _and_ WIZARDRY

Headmaster: Albus Dumbledore

_(Order of Merlin, First Class, Grand Sorc., Chf. Warlock,  
Supreme Mugwump, International Confed. of Wizards)_

Dear Ms. Evans,

We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment.

Term begins on 1 September. We await your owl by no later than 31 July.

Yours sincerely,

Minerva McGonagall,

Deputy Headmistress

A memory flashed through Lily's mind;

"_It is real, isn't it? It's not a joke? Petunia says you're lying to me. Petunia says there isn't a Hogwarts. It is real, isn't it?_"

"_It's real for us, not for her. But we'll get the letter, you and me._"

Hogwarts was meant of magical children. Children who fly on broomsticks, turn rats into teacups, make potions that could cure things muggles only dreamed of. With the letter, Lily Evan's Hogwarts adventure was only beginning.

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Please review, pretty pretty please? :)


	2. Blood Orange

I don not own Harry Potter. Sadly.

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The four Hogwarts houses: Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, Gryffindor, and Slytherin. As an eleven year old, you get placed into one of the four. That one decision, made by a _hat_, dictates the rest of your future. Gryffindors, known as the bravest of the brave and daring, tend to pick daring career paths: fighting criminals, taming dragons, even starting your own business out of nothing; Ravenclaws tend to pick jobs that test their knowledge: teaching and tutoring, doing something for the ministry; Slytherins receive high positions; if not, their ambition gets them frequent promotions. And Hufflepuffs, being as nice as they are, tend to accept whatever is left. The houses are like family during the seven years at Hogwarts. And, like most families, they tend to be loyal to each other. It's no secret that Gryffindors and Slytherins hate each other with a burning passion; Hufflepuffs strongly dislike when Ravenclaws flaunt their brains; the bravery and loyalty of Hufflepuffs and Gryffindors cause them to get along swimmingly; Ravenclaws and Slytherins share craftiness and ambition. Gryffindors tend to be "good guys", Slytherins are usually called "bad"; yet there are always exceptions to these stereotypes….

Petunia, however, didn't seem to like any of them. At least, that's what she said. The Dumbledore letter said otherwise.

"You better be in Slytherin." Severus told Lily on their first train ride from platform 9 ¾. They had spent months lying on the ground, shoulder to shoulder, playing out stories that would happen once they get to Hogwarts. In each one, they had always been in the same house.

"Slytherin? Who wants to be in Slytherin? I'd leave, wouldn't you?" Due to Lily's crying over Petunia, she hadn't notice the two other boys sitting in the train compartment. And, even though she was only eleven, Lily couldn't help but notice that _they were good looking_.

One had shoulder-length brown hair-the first time she's ever seen a boy with hair past his chin. His gray eyes, although shining with mischief, seemed to be lacking something unnamable. Not necessarily like he was abused- not the same look that Severus carried with him-but that something or someone didn't really agree with him.

The other had large, round hazel eyes, and dark hair that Lily almost mistook as a birds nest. His good looks were not the boy's most noticeable features- that position was taken by his clothing.

The boy, although not completely in his uniform yet, was wearing a white dress shirt and tie, dress pants, and tennis shoes. Unlike the rest of the first years, Lily and Severus included, who wore a black tie until we got sorted and given ties with our house colors, the boy was wearing a bright orange tie. With matching neon orange shoes. And it wasn't just orange, like the color of the fruit. It was _obnoxiously _orange. _So_ orange that it hurt to look at. So orange that the eleven year old girl lost track of the conversation for a moment, just being distracted by the orange-ness.

"No, if you'd rather be brawny than brainy-"

"Where're you hoping to go, seeing as you're neither?"

Lily was fed up. Between her fall out with Petunia, and now these boys just being plain old gits- whatever house they were in, she sure as hell hoped she wasn't.

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"GRYFFINDOR!" The boy with the gray eyes, who Lily now knew as Black, Sirius, glanced at the table with green ties before running over to the cheering table on the other side of the Great Hall.

She glanced at her best friend, who seemed much happier now that he knew he wouldn't be in the same house as Sirius. The new Gryffindor's best friend was at the front of the group, and cheered along with all the other Gryffindors. Now that they were standing, Lily could see how short he really was. Granted, Lily was fairly tall for her age, but the boy only came up to her chin. It seemed odd that someone his size could have the big personality he was emitting through his body language. The muggleborn was suddenly reminded of her stepmum's loud, American voice.

"Can you believe we're finally here?" He whispered to Lily, a smile playing on his face as Professor McGonagall called, "Blishwick, Astoria!", "After years of waiting…"

The redhead found that she couldn't return Sev's smile. With her stomach doing a gymnastics' routine as it was, she felt that if she moved her mouth at all her breakfast would come tumbling out of it.

"Burke, Stephalia!" "Cattermole, Reginald!" "Cornfoote, Juno!"

"Evans, Lily!"

Severus gave her hand a quick squeeze and Lily tried to smile at him as she made my way to the talking hat. Despite the fact that her legs feeling like lead, and her body trembling with every breath, Lily somehow made her way to the stool and had the hat slipped over her dark red hair and emerald eyes

_Well, hello there! My oh my do you have courage…_

"What do you think about Slytherin?" She gripped the stool with her hands, remembering what Sev had said to her on the train.

_Slytherin? Oh no no no, you would do no good there. Your heart is too pure, you have too much hope. You see the good in everyone, and are willing to put others in front of yourself. Perfect for-_

"-But-"

"_GRYFFINDOR!_" The hat was lifted from the girl's head and Lily couldn't stop from sighing in relief that she actually _did_ get placed in a house at all. A grin finally spread across her face as she greeted the cheering people. Throwing a sad smile at Severus, an enormous amount of guilt seemed to fill her heart at the fact that she wasn't in Slytherin.

_No, don't think that, Lily. It's not your fault._

"Congrats!" Black, Sirius said to Lily as she sat next to him. Having a strange feeling of not wanting to anger Sev, she turned her back on him.

"Oh, Merlin." Sirius muttered, and the redhead could picture him rolling his eyes. "Fortescue, Alice" joined the Gryffindor table, sitting across from the duo. And imagine Lily's delight when, eleven people later, "Potter, James" sat down right next to "Pettigrew, Peter", which was conveniently directly across from Sirius, and diagonal from herself. And, oh god, was he funny.

"Wait, so there _are_ elves!?" A muggleborn with thin brown hair and a bony structure, Mary MacDonald, was asking a second year, Tarabella, in disbelief

"Oh yeah," Tarabella told the younger girl, clearly amused at her fascination.

"Wanna know what they learn in school?" James asked Mary.

"Elves don't go to school." Peter, a small boy with blonde hair and small blue eyes, interjected. The short raven-haired boy rolled his eyes.

"Of course they do-Paul?- Oh, Peter. Everyone does!"

"My house elves don't." Sirius snorted into his chicken leg.

"What do the ones that go to school learn?" Lily asked, now not quite sure who to believe.

James smirked, clearly happy to have an audience. "The elf-abet."

Being eleven year olds, the group of first year Gryffindors found that way funnier than it actually was.

"Nice tie." The first person to be sorted out of the new Gryffindors, Camille Alvarez, snorted at James.

He looked down at his orange tie and stroked it. "Ah, yes, old Matilda. My dad says it's been in our family since his grandparents' parents. Every Potter wears it on their first day at Hogwarts. It was my granddad who named it. I'm just lucky enough to have matching shoes."

"Oh, so you're a Potter!" Alice Fortescue, a girl with chubby curly blonde hair and a round face, had a look of realization on her face. "That's why you looked so familiar! My dad supplies your dad's Christmas Ball with food."

"You're the ice cream man's daughter? I'm pretty sure we're fourth cousins, too."

"Do all wizarding families know each other?" Lily asked no one in particular, feeling slightly excluded at the fact that most wizards and witches knew of each other.

"Somewhat." Alice shrugged. "Are you muggleborn?"

Lily nodded.

"ahourind?" Sirius spoke with his mouth full of mashed potatoes.

"_What?_"

"What's your friend?" He jerked his head to the Slytherin table, where Severus was now talking with people, albeit glancing up frequently to look at the freckled redhead.

"Oh, Sev is a halfblood. He lives in my town."

"Really? What's his surname?"

"Snape."

James drummed his fingers on the table. "Never heard of a Snape before…"

"It's his mum that's the witch, Potter."

"Merlin, a half blood in Slytherin…" Sirius mumbled to himself. "Who would've guessed… Well, then again, I'm a Black in Gryffindor. I guess anything really is possible at Hogwarts…"

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The first month passed quickly, surprising Lily. Magic was just as amazing as muggles believed it was. Some classmates scoffed at her when she happily did her homework almost immediately after class, but compared to times tables and learning the structure of a cell, transfiguration and charms were easily considered fun.

The large castle quickly began feeling like a home. The dormroom filled with 6 red beds became a gathering place for the first year Gryffindor girls complete with, but not limited to: pillow fights, giggling, and discovering many differences between growing up in the magical and muggle worlds.

One of those differences—Quidditch. As much as a sports fanatic as she was in the muggle world, Lily couldn't see the fascination of Quidditch. Flying around on broomsticks seemed so…stereotypical. And those flying—bluggers? Bludgers?—that was just downright dangerous!

Temperatures began dropping as September rolled into October. Quidditch—or more specifically, House team tryouts- happened to be the topic of discussion all around the Gryffindor house one evening at the beginning of October.

The freckled redhead was contently sitting in a squishy armchair in front of the roaring fire, a muggle book, Little House on the Prairie, sitting in her hands. Lily's mind, however, wasn't focused on Laura Ingall's journeys. Instead, she found herself thinking back to the walk she went on an hour earlier with some girls from her dormitory. There was no way to describe the Hogwarts grounds. Words like beautiful and magnificent were deemed not grand enough by the preteen. How could one even put into words way the edge of the Forbidden Forest was beginning to form an array of reds, yellows, and browns; or how the sun was reflected on the Great Lake; or even how the 50 foot high stands of the-

"-Quidditch Pitch." _Squeak. Squeak._ My dad says once a kid fell out of it." _Squeak. Squeak._ "He wasn't even playing!" _Squeak._ "The whole match was put on hold for 30 minutes!" _Squeak. Squeak. Squeak._

"James Potter!" Lily threw her book down and jumped up as the raven-haired boy appeared at the bottom of the boys' staircase. His posse- otherwise known as Sirius, Remus, and Peter—looked between their friend, who now bore a look of terror, and Lily, who wore one of an angry, deranged young woman. Mutually, they agreed to let their friend deal with the (possibly) hormonal preteen, and bolted for the portrait entrance of the common room.

"Lily, it wasn't me who did it!" James began, guilt now flooding his eyes.

The redhead tilted her head in confusion as she stared at the shorter boy. "Did what?"

James now stared open mouthed at her. Lily was suddenly reminded of the bullfrog Petunia once brought home from school. "Wait, what are you talking about?"

"Your shoes!" She gestured to his bright orange tennis shoes.

Hazel eyes lit up in excitement, "They're brilliant, aren't they!?" He began twisting his ankles, as though giving a fashion show. "Don't ya just love 'em?"

"No." Lily said in a deadpan manner. "In fact, I hate them."

James Potter seriously looked as though he deflated. In a hurt voice, he questioned, "What! Why?"

"They. Never. Stop. SQUEAKING!" Lily threw her hands up in the air, bringing some attention onto her and the pureblood.

"But you have to dig them! They're orange!"

Lily was now looking James in the eyes. "Potter, I _hate_—hate hate hate hate—with a burning passion everything that is orange."

"Is that even possible?"

"Yes!"

James, now with a cool composure, looked as though he were enjoying this exchange. "There has to be something, _anything_, that you like that's orange. I mean, you're hair's orange!"

"No, it's red."

"Er, I'd personally call it blood orange."

"It's bloody red!"

"What kind of color is bloody red?"

A sigh of annoyance crossed Lily's mouth. After a moment, she spoke, "Basketball."

"God Bless You."

"No!" Lily rubbed her temple. How can one person give her such a headache? "I didn't sneeze! Basketballs are orange!"

"Okay… I don't know what the hell that is. Look, Lily, it was nice talking to you and, er, getting yelled at, but my friends left like seven minutes and thirty three-four-five-"

"Oh just go!" Lily exclaimed as she plopped down in the chair again and picked up her book. Only after James Potter _squeaked_ away, did she begin to wonder what about him made her get so cross.

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Please review, pretty pretty please? :)


	3. Merry Christmas, Potter

I don not own Harry Potter. Sadly.

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As the months went on, there was one thing that every first year learned: Potter and Black didn't get along with Severus. Especially to everyone who was in the one class shared between Slytherins and Gryffindors-Potions.

And on one chilly day in late December, their hatred of each other suddenly became pronounced to Lily.

The class started out normal. She sat in front of Mary and Alice, the two girls whom the redhead really got close to in the past few months, and next to Sev, who Lily guiltily didn't get to spend as much time with as the two originally planned. Professor Slughorn, a man with a large, round belly, bald head, and bushy mustache, gave out instructions for a potion to cure boils.

"Yeah, so my dad said that I can invite some friends to his Christmas Ball." I overheard James telling his potions partner, Remus Lupin. "I was thinking of you guys, obviously, and then probably Fortescue, MacDonald, Evans, McKinnon, Alvarez, and Wendelin."

"So you mean the Gryffindor girls in our year?" Remus snorted.

"Isn't that supposed to be, like, really formal?" Alice interrupted the boys' conversation.

"That's exactly _why_ I'm inviting people this year." Potter informed her. He turned towards Lily. "So, Evans, want to come?"

"I'd, er, have to ask my parents. They like to spend the holidays at my grandmum's house."

"Would you actually want to go to _his_ party?" Severus asked, quiet enough for only his best friendd to hear. "Don't tell me your friends with him; he does everything in his power to antagonize me and my friends."

She bit my lip. Of course the Gryffindor was friendly with James Potter—they basically lived together!- but she wouldn't call them _friends_. And if he actually did do the things that Sev claimed him to…. Which wasn't that hard to believe… _But why should who Severus likes and dislikes dictate who I like and dislike?_

"Of course not." Lily replied, an odd feeling budding in her stomach. "He's a toerag. An arrogant toerag. But why would it matter to you if I was?"

"Well, like you said, he's an arrogant gitty toerag prick b-"

"Don't exaggerate. He's not _that_ bad."

Sev stopped stirring out potion and looked at the tall girl next to him "I'm not the one exaggerating. You are, when you said it mattered to me. It doesn't."

Lily looked her best friend in the eyes. It did annoy him. It bothered him so much, he just didn't want to admit it. Didn't want anyone else to know. "Well don't worry, my dad would never let me go to the Ball anyway."

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"Lily, I'm not inviting Snivellus." James Potter caught up with Lily, Mary, and another Gryffindor first year, Elladora Wendelin, as they walked from Potions class to Herbology.

"His name is _Severus_, Potter." The first year snapped.

James waved off the correction. "Whatever, he's still not coming, _Evans_."

Whether it was because of Sev's comments in potions, what James was saying right now, or a combination of both, Lily suddenly felt extremely irked. Just as the group made its past the front steps of the castle, she took a book out of her bag and hit Potter in the head. Mary and Elladora found it very amusing.

"Stop being a toerag, Potter."

The raven haired boy glared at me and shrugged. "You asked for it."

"Asked for wh-" Her question was cut short as the eleven year old boy tackled her to the ground and began tickling me.

"Bloody hell! Potter! Stop! Stop, James, Stop!" In an effort to get him the stop, Lily began flailing my limbs. Surprisingly, after one kick, Potter rolled away.

"Bloody hell!" He groaned. I sat up and saw Mary, Elladora, and James' friends Remus, Sirius, and Peter all roaring with laughter. James himself was lying on his back, gripping his private parts.

"That's my Christmas gift to you, Potter. Hope you liked it."

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Karen was the one to greet Lily at Kings Cross. As she walked through the barrier at Platform 9 ¾, the first thing I noticed was her fake orange hair. The original excitement to be home now diminished to longing to return to the grand castle.

"Lil-eee!" Her American accent made a distinction between her and the other yelling people in the crowd.

"Wow, you look just like your mum!" Mary exclaimed as the two girls made their way over to Karen, with Mary's parents and little brothers in tow.

The redhead bit her lip to keep from correcting her friend. The less people at Hogwarts knew about the Evans' real mother, the better.

"Hi, you must be Mrs. Evans!" Mrs. MacDonald shook Karen's hand. "I'm Melanie MacDonald."

"Oh, please call me Karen!" Karen flashed her bright, white teeth in a smile that annoyed the hell out of her youngest stepdaughter "Does your child go to school with Lily?"

Melanie turned towards Mary. "Yes, we've heard a lot about your daughter in many letters!"

Karen's smile seemed to widen, like it always did whenever she was mistaken for Lily's mum."Lily is my stepdaughter. I'm not her real mother."

"Oh, I'm sorry!" Melanie turned to the eleven year old whose eye level was almost equal to hers. Her cheeks tinged pink from embarrassment.

"It's okay." Lily found myself replying in an odd, small voice that definitely didn't belong to her. "I'll see you after the break, Mare. Happy Christmas."

"Bye Lils." Mary must have sensed the change of emotion, because her goodbye seemed to lack the same enthusiasm that Lily's did. Or maybe she was just sad to part with her best friend. Lily really hoped it was the latter.

"So," Karen seemed nervous as she and Lily got into the car together. "H-how was the school?"

"It was **_brilliant_**!" The young girl almost forgot who she was talking to as stories began pouring out of her mouth like water out of a faucet: Turning teacups into rats, learning how to fly on a broom( or, at least, attempting to), making potions that could instantly cure the acne on her nose(though she didn't exactly tell her that last part). Before Lily knew it, Karen was pulling into the driveway of brick house.

"Where's Petunia?" Lily asked, slightly hurt and surprised that her sister didn't greet her at the front door. _Was she really that mad about reading her letter?_

"She's probably upstairs reading. Devon broke up with her last week. Shame really, right before Christmas…" Karen sighed, busying herself in the kitchen.

"Who's Devon?" Lily questioned, a perplexed look on her face. It never occurred to her eleven year old mind that life went on back home while she was at Hogwarts. "She had a _boyfriend_?"

Karen gave the child an amused glance. "Tuney is going to be fifteen in June, you know. Some day you'll be interested in the boys at your school, too."

Lily attempted at picturing herself liking Severus, Sirius, Remus, Peter, or even Potter. The idea itself made her want to gag.

"Y'know, I'm fairly certain that there is a surprise for you in your room."

With that said, Lily ran down the hall with the same gusto she did when McGonagall came to her house and burst open the door to the bedroom she shared with Petunia for the past 11, almost 12, years.

"LILY!" A high-pitched squeal greeted greeted her as face was smothered in blonde curls. It wasn't Petunia's though-

"Henri!" Lily laughed as she hugged her cousin. On the bed to Lily's right, Petunia glanced at her sister over her magazine, and it suddenly struck the younger Evans- _her_ sister was a _teenager_. The baby fat that was present the past summer was completely gone, leaving her with a thin, bony face that reminded Lily of a horse. The freckled preteen silently hoped that she didn't have that same facial structure in three years. Petunia's blue eyes seemed ten times brighter surrounded by black eyeliner, and two bumps protruded from her chest that exceptionally big compared to her bony body.

"It's been so strange not having you in school!" The blonde 12 year old giggled, and ended the hug. "Everyone was wondering where you were the first day. Rachel almost seemed heartbroken that you didn't tell her about the boarding school! It took me a week to convince her that your acceptance was last minute. Do you get any good magazines there? Tuney and I were just reading the latest _Seventeen_."

"You painted the room." Lily stated, looking around at the walls.

"Mm-hmm." Petunia acknowledged my comment.

"Orange." Lily's face revealed her disgust as she said that word, and an odd copper-y taste spread within her mouth.

"Indeed, I did."

Lily took a deep breath, trying to calm her temper, and she suddenly remembered what Karen said just moments before about her boyfriend.

"So, Tuney, anything interesting happen while I was gone?"

Petunia glanced at her sister again, this time with some sort of coldness in her blue eyes. Lily felt a shiver go down her spine.

"Nothing you'd want to know, you f-" She seemed to remember that Henri was in the room, and stopped herself just in time. Henri jumped onto the bed that Lily abandoned the past few months.

"Petunia got a boyfriend!" She giggled.

"I _had_ a boyfriend." The said teenager grumbled. "And will you two please shut up? I'm trying to read."

Lily looked longingly at her sister. "Yes, Petunia, it is great to me home, thanks for asking."

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Please review, pretty pretty please? :)


	4. Mum?

I don not own Harry Potter. Sadly.

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Hey, to the people who are actually reading this, thanks! FYI sorry about the time skips and short chapers and stuff, but the good part of the story hasn't really begun yet... As they get older the chapters will be more and more detailed and only skip like a week or two at most... ish. Also, sorry if I mess up any phrases or anything! I'm American so I'm not super familiar with British slang. Also, apologies for this super short chapter. Thanks for reading!

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The house was empty. Empty, except for a redheaded witch, who was currently belting Beatles songs into her hairbrush. What other way, she supposed, was she to spend the last day before returning to Hogwarts; nothing would complete the two weeks were filled with popcorn-filled sleepovers with her cousin Henri, and visiting her Grandparents than a dance party. Of course, then she got the phone call.

Now, being almost twelve years old, Lily has answered the phone plenty of times in her life. Every year her Grandparents would usually call and sing 'Happy Birthday'; As she got older she'd start arranging her own play dates with her friends; she would get calls from her father while he was on business trips…. But never from _her._

It never really occurred to Lily that _she_ was real flesh and bone. Sure- the preteen has seen pictures. Pregnant and laughing on the beach; cradling a small red haired baby; her blonde hair going in all directions as two little girls brought her breakfast in bed…..

The sudden rings from the phone were as loud as gunshots, causing the hairbrush to fall to the floor. Lily ran to pick it up, and answered as she always did, "Evans' residence."

"Hello?" The woman on the other line had somewhat of a gravelly voice. Something about it made butterflies erupt in Lily's stomach, yet she couldn't pinpoint why. "Can I speak to Petunia or Lily?"

"Who's calling?"

"Gail."

Gail. _Gail._ Gail_. _Lily didn't know anyone by the name of Gail. Why did that name sound so familiar? And then realization hit her- _it was Petunia's middle name!_ Why did she have that middle name? Lily never asked… Her own middle name, Allison, came from her Mum's mother, who died before she was born. The answer landed in her mind like a raindrop hitting the ground-transforming from a contained shape to a splatter, effecting everyone and everything in its way- _Gail was my mother's name_.

"This is Lily." The familiar feeling anger pulsed through her. She was feeling that much too often these days. But that's beside the point- Why did she decide to call now? After **years** of never reaching out? Where was she anyway? Did she realize that she left her daughters alone with that weird, obnoxious, foreigner? Did she even care?

"Oh, Lily, sweetheart! I haven't seen you in six years!" Six years? _She left when I was six?_ For some strange reason, Lily always thought it was earlier. She tried to recall a memory with her, but none came to mind. "Has Daddy been keeping you and Petunia from visiting?" Lily's anger was now shifting towards her father. _He knew where she has been this whole time and never told me?!_ For some reason, that didn't surprise her as much as it should have. Lily suspected that must have known that deep down.

"Er, I don't know?"

"Well, it doesn't matter now. The past is in the past. Oh, Lily, I have the best news!"

"What is it?" Lily asked, refraining from her desire to slam the phone down.

"I'm getting out in two years!" _Getting out? Where is she getting out from!?_ "They took a year off of my sentence!"

Sentence…. **_As in jail!?_**

"Th-that's great!" The daughter replied to her mum, her one true, blood-related mum, eternally grateful that the elder woman could not see her face at the moment. _My mother was not in jail. Why would she be? What would she have done that landed her in jail for years? No, that can't be it…. She must be…. In the military! And she's been travelling for years, keeping the world safe….. Yeah…. I'll just keep trying to convince myself that._

"You and Petunia will be there when I get out, won't you?"

"Of course, mum." _Mum_. _God_, Lily swore_, if I ever had kids I would make them call me mum every hour of their life just to make sure that the word doesn't sound as odd on their lips as it did on mine._

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Please review, pretty pretty please? :)


	5. Who the hell is You-Know-Who

I don not own Harry Potter. Sadly.

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Sorry for another short one!

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"Mind if I sit here?" The compartment door opened, revealing a boy with sandy blonde hair.

"Not at all, Remus!" Lily answered with a smile, happy that she wouldn't have to spend the whole ride to Hogwarts by herself. "How was your Christmas?"

"It was good." He sat down in the seat across from his classmate, not caring to elaborate. "How was yours?"

"Brilliant! It was nice to see my cousin again. She thinks I'm going to a muggle boarding school in Southern England though, so it sucked having to come up with lies. How was Potter's party?"

"I was sick so I couldn't go." Remus shrugged. Now that Lily thought about it, he did look quite pale before the break. At least he looks healthier now. "Do you know if anyone else is going to be taking the train today?"

Lily shook her head, causing red strands of hair to smack her in the face. "Mary went back last week, and Alice yesterday. I'm not sure about Camille and Marlene, but Elladora stayed at Hogwarts."

"James and Sirius went back last week, too. Merlin, I wonder if they managed to blow up the castle yet…"

It was surprising how to Lily how much she didn't know about Remus, despite the fact that she had all of her classes and meals with him. Like the fact that his favorite quidditch team was Montrose Magpies, that he once rode a broom into woods behind his house and ended up hitting an owl, or that he once blew off his father's eyebrow while playing exploding snaps. After shaking from laughter, it really made her wonder why they weren't friends. Sure, Severus might hate Potter and Black, but he didn't hate Remus- right?

"-and then my Uncle announced that he and his girlfriend are getting married. Henri didn't seem very thrilled about the thou-"

"LIL-EE!" Someone yelling out my name stopped our conversation, which had carried all the way from the train to the Entrance Hall. The girl in questioning turned around, and saw Sev trying to make his way towards her. Waving Remus goodbye, she began heading towards the Slytherin.

"Hey Sev!" Lily greeted, feeling happiness wash over her as she saw her best friend. A smile stretched out across his face as she said his name. "How was Christmas?"

"Amazing! You should stay in the castle next year." He eyes trailed Remus' retreating back. "Are you friends with him?"

Lily urged myself not to roll my eyes. The friends thing _again_? "So what if I am?"

"Well-"

"Y'know, I don't go around commenting on your friendship with Mulciber and Avery."

"But they're both guys, like me-"

The same feeling anger from the day before pulsed through the muggleborn's body. _Was a part of growing up always being angry?_ "So you're _not _friendly with any girls? What about me, I'm a girl!"

Severus seemed startled by Lily's outburst, not expecting this kind of reaction. He opened his mouth to reply when-

"Lily!" A redheaded Ravenclaw stopped short of running into her. "Thank Merlin! I haven't got a clue about the Charms homework! Will you help me?"

"Sure, Cade. How was your Christmas?" With a glance back at Sev, Lily began following the boy up the staircase.

Cade shrugged. "Okay, I guess. My brother Arthur had a baby. Well, I mean, his wife did. Not him, that would've bene weird for everyone. They're calling him Bill. Bilius is convinced the kid is named after him, but Arthur doesn't have the heart to tell him otherwise. Did you hear about what You-Know-Who did!?"

"_Who?_"

Cade stopped walking. "You don't know who you-know-who is? Oh Merlin, Lily, forget about Charms- go and ask someone for the Daily Prophet!"

So she did.

"Hey Lils! How was break?" Mary greeted her friend as Lily entered the common room. She was sitting by a fireplace with Alice, Marlene, and the boys. In Sirius' hands was a newspaper.

"Sirius, can I see that?" I then proceeded to pluck it out of his hands without waiting for him to answer.

"-Hey!"

**TWO MUGGLE FAMILIES MURDERED; YOU-KNOW-WHO**

**SUSPECTED**

**The Holiday season hasn't been a good one for all. Two muggle families have been found dead the morning of New Years Day, both lived a block away from Diagon Alley. Muggles have not been able to find any source of what had killed them, which leads us to believe that it was the Killing Curse. The proximity to the popular wizarding location has put many on edge. These attacks are thought to be from Lord Voldemort, otherwise known as He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named. You-Know-Who has recently become a well-known name due to his hatred of both muggles and muggle-born witches and wizards. As of late 1971, it is estimated that his followers have doubled from last January, when he and the so-called "Death Eaters" have come into the light.**

Lily gave Sirius the paper back, suddenly feeling nauseous. The idea of that man- _it made her sick_. Why did he hate muggles and muggleborns? And he killed them _using magic_. It didn't even occur to her that there were people who would use dark magic! Wait- Defense against the Dark arts… _Wow, okay Lily, way to be stupid… _but he had _followers_. What if there were people in Hogwarts who had that attitude too?

"Don't worry about him, psychos like this tend to appear every couple of years." James said, taking Lily out of her train of thought. In return, she glared at him.

"I'm _not_ worried." The redhead snapped. Sirius was staring at James as though he wanted to say something. Then he glanced at me, shook his head, and went back to the paper. "Psychos like him should be in jail." Lily added under my breath. The image of her mum in an orange uniform popped into her head.

"My mum was not a psycho. She shouldn't be."

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